MasterChef is a television competitive cooking show franchise created by Franc Roddam, which originated with the UK version in July 1990. The format was revived and updated for the BBC in February 2005 by executive producers Franc Roddam and John Silver and series producer Karen Ross.

The show's format has been exported around the world under the same MasterChef logo, and is now produced in more than 40 countries and airs in at least 200 territories.

The format has appeared in four major versions: the main MasterChef series, MasterChef: The Professionals for professional working chefs, Celebrity MasterChef featuring well known celebrities as the contestants and Junior MasterChef, a version created and adapted for children, which was first developed in 1994 and has also proliferated to other countries outside the UK in recent years. In 2012, Australia created the fifth version called MasterChef All-Stars, for former contestants to raise money for charity.

MasterChef Australia is the most watched television series in Australia,[1][2] with the season 2 finale being the third most watched show in Australian television history.[3][4]MasterChef Australia also won the award for 'Most Popular Reality Program' at the 2010 Logie Awards. Many other countries also broadcast the Australian version, either dubbed or with subtitles in the local language.

The revived format is sold internationally by production company, Shine Group.